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Ironing Board Cover

This isn’t one of the prettiest projects I’ve done, but it’s been a long time coming. You’ve all seen the ugliness that was my ironing board. No more.

I intended to make a new cover for a long, long time. I think I bought my cover in the early 90’s. It was ugly new and the years didn’t do it any favors. Neither did I, abusing it with iron-on-everything and stabbing it regularly with scissors. After seeing it as an unappealing background in one too many tutorial photos, it was time.

I took the cover off, and staring back at me was a 20-year-old pink and rust top. There are no words.

I decided I would spray paint it. I put my hand on the top, reached under to fold it up and heard a loud, unhealthy pop. From the board, not me this time. One of the welds had blown out. The only thing holding that board together had been that awful cover. I may never get undressed again.

It didn’t exactly break my heart to have to buy a new ironing board, but it came with another thin, unattractive cover. I went to the fabric store and bought some of that silver ironing board fabric and no spray paint.

This is a really simple project. Many thanks to this blog for the basics on how to do it. Visit, just to see the cute fabric hers is made from.

Lay the silver fabric face down on the floor. Lay the ironing board face down on top of it. Trace around the board, 3″ away. Cut out.

Bias cut casing fabric in 2″ wide strips, piecing together enough to go all the way around the board. Fold in half, wrong sides together, and press. The irony of needing an ironing board for this project is not lost on me. Iron-y. Groan.

Fold end 1/4″ to the inside. Stitch facing to cover with raw edges together. When you make it around to where you started, fold edge to inside so it meets the starting edge. Zigzag, if desired.

Press seam and casing away from cover.

Tie roman shade cord to a large safety pin and feed all the way through casing.

Feed a cord-stopper onto ends of cord. It was the one thing that was salvageable from my old cover.

My new cover had a piece of batting free-floating underneath, so I left it. You’ll need padding of some kind under the cover.

Lay the new cover on top and pull as tight as you can. Push cord-stopper up to hold.

We’ll see if this one makes it 15 or so years. I don’t think it’s ugly enough to survive that long.